Tuesday, November 23, 2004

TurkeyWell... Things have been a might orney around the camp fire the last few days, so let's lighten it up a bit.

Now Thanksgiving is comin up.... and now.. to me... Thanksgivin' is all about the Lord... and that means family... and family means friends... and friends means gettin' together... and gettin' together mean....

EATIN!

Now I reckon I've talked about this before, but it bears repeatin'. After all, if you're like me, you are already either packing up stuff to hit the road, or you're preppin' for cookin'. So, if you're cookin' the bird... Well brother.. We're here for ya!

If you don't have a smoker at your disposal, I recommend you trot on over to the Well. Ol' Digger has you covered over there. However, if you are blessed with a smoker, then rest assured, I have your back.

Smokin' a Turkey: The Nate Way.

Smoker: You need one. I've used charcoal (Pain in the ass), Electric (easy, but slow), and I finally settled on the Gas one. Wow. You can dial your temp in just right. Unbelievable.

Bird: You need one. 15 - 20 pounds. These dogs smoke at about 1 hour per pound, so do the math. If you got a charcoal smoker and you need a big bird, you're in for a long night.

So.. Prep your smoker. Fill the water basin with water, and poor MUCH jack daniels in it too. Soak 4 cups of chips in the water for about 30 minutes. While that's soakin' tend to the bird. first, get all that neck and stuff outta there and throw it away. YUCK! Good. Now peel that onion and quarter it, and chuck it in the whole. nice! Now fetch that bacon grease and rub the whole bird in it. She should be slick as can be. Now just for good measure, take a heapin' spoonfull of that grease and plop it in the hole too. Good. Now... fetch the chips out of the water and set them aside. Mince up the garlic and drop it in the water. Ok.. now you're ready.

Haul it outside, put the chips on the coals, and smoke that bird till she's a couple hours from done. Once you're there, plop you a boston butt up on the rack above your bird. All that juice from the butt will drip down over your bird.... oh lord it's to good for words...

Things to remember:

- Smoke for 1 hour per pound. If she ain't 170 degrees, she ain't done.
- Keep water in that pan. That humidity keeps the bird moist and cooks her faster.
- Keep whiskey in that pan too. If it happens to pour over your bird on the way in, so much the better.
- Mind the temperature of the smoker. It's tough to keep it good and hot on a cold windy day. Smoke in a sheltered area if ya can.
- Keep somethin' handy to beat the neighbors back. The smell brings 'em from miles.